Alcohol Sponsorship of College Athletics Targeted

Over the years, college sports have been substantially supported by alcohol companies that advertise during television and radio broadcasts. But some athletic officials and health advocates aim to put an end to those sponsorship dollars, CNN/Money reported Sept. 3.

According to the SportsBusiness Journal, beer and other alcohol companies spent $50 million advertising on college sports broadcasts last year. In addition, 45 percent of Division 1A football schools received direct sponsorship dollars from alcohol companies, while another 25 percent received indirect money through advertising.

Leading the effort to rid college sports of alcohol advertising are the athletic directors and head coaches of some high-profile schools. Among them are Andy Geiger of Ohio State University, Joe Paterno, football coach of Penn State University, and U.S. Rep. Tom Osborne (R-Neb.), the former coach of the University of Nebraska football team. They join a campaign that is backed by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth.

"Alcohol abuse is the leading cause of death on college campuses," said Osborne, who has introduced a non-binding resolution in the U.S. Congress that urges schools and the NCAA to end their practices of taking money from alcohol companies.

Osborne has had trouble finding co-sponsors for the resolution, which is not surprising considering that 85 percent of the U.S. House of Representatives and two-thirds of the U.S. Senate received campaign contributions from the liquor industry in the current election cycle.

"The alcohol industry has lobbied very hard on this issue. I've had people tell me they've been told to stay away from Tom Osborne on this issue," he said.

As a result, Osborne and others are hoping to convince colleges that make up the NCAA to push for a ban on alcohol sponsorship.

"The discussion has increased enormously within the schools of the NCAA in the last year," said George Hacker, director of the Alcohol Policies Project at the CSPI. "We're on the right track, but those few schools that really profit from the relationship have the toughest decision to make."

Ohio State is such a school. Geiger was able to convince the school to negotiate with its radio rights holder to stop selling ads that promote alcohol. As a result, the school is receiving about $85,000 less each year. The university continues to receive money from television contracts because the contracts are out of the school's control.

Geiger hopes to make up the difference in funding by selling to other advertisers. "There are other product lines that would buy that time," he said. "People would have to roll up their sleeves and work hard."

But sports broadcasting consultant Neal Pilson said it would be difficult for college sports to replace alcohol dollars with other sponsors if a complete ban was enacted.

"The significant dollars paid by Bud and other beer companies could not be replaced," he said. "There's not other money that would automatically flow if there was a complete ban."

Related link: CSPI's Campaign for Alcohol-Free Sports TV

Source: www.jointogether.org